Tips 'n Tricks

Do you have a helpful hint or handy trick that will make any aspect of knitting easier? Share it! Post ideas on scrap yarn usages, stitch markers, color changing, maintaining your sanity while following a difficult pattern, etc. There is most probably someone out there that will benefit from your help. Need ideas yourself? Read others' comments--we all live and learn!

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Name: Sasha
Subject: Needle Cases
Comment: I wanted something to keep all my knitting needles, scissors, stitch markers, etc in. I ended up getting a cloth Paint Brush case that rolls up. Now I can carry all my knitting needles easily in the same tote with my yarn!

Name: Diane
Subject: Holding Knitting Yarn
Comment: When I begin knitting I place the skein into a plastic bag, pull the yarn through a handle and tie a knot in the bag. While I knit it can be on the floor and will never come out of the bag and won't get dirty.
Also if I need 2 skeins I have each skein come out of each side so they don't get tangled. I knot the bag and once again the yarn does get dirty nor does it get tangled.

Name: knitter from scotland
Subject: sewing seams
Comment: I sew my seams together with laying the pieces flat on a table and right sides up - facing me. Looks like the project has been knit on a circular needle.

Name: Caryll's Yarn Sales
Subject: binding off
Comment: Always bind off your knitting with a needle one size larger than the one you are knitting with, this will keep your bind off from getting too tight.

Name: Avery
Subject: Patterns
Comment: I keep my patterns in a 3-ring binder in sheet protectors. Then all the patterns are together, and if need be, you can write on the sheet proctector to cross out rows of the pattern/charts, or make notes and be able to erase them without ruining your pattern...and you can use dividers to organise the patterns (hats, scarves, sweaters, bags, etc)

Name: Caryll's Yarn Sales
Subject: picking up stitches
Comment: When picking up stitches around a neckline and it looks like you are going to have a hole appear where you are picking up, then pick up your stitch from the back instead of the front and this will twist the stitch closing in the hole.

Name: Melanie
Subject: Storing DPNs
Comment: I keep my double points in travel toothbrush cases. I have different colors for each size and wrote the size (both US and metric) on the case with a permanent marker. With the smaller diameters, I placed a cotton ball in the ends of the case to keep the needles from slipping through the air holes at the end of the case.

Name: Nancy Baxter
Subject: Wool Care
Comment: When giving something you have knitted as a gift, always include a band off the wool, turned inside out to display the washing instructions.

Name: peggy french
Subject: needle holders
Comment: When putting my knitting down I was always looking for my needle holders to keep my yarn from slipping off my needles. One day as I was looking around I saw some thick rubber bands. (Our mailman bundles our mail with these nice thick rubber bands.) I just put rubber bands on each knitting needle and that way my yarn project did not slip off. No more looking for those rubber tips to fit over my needles!

Name: Claire
Subject: Keeping your place in a complicated pattern
Comment: I use large post it's and move them after each row so that the next row I need to do is displayed and the rest covered. it works well when you have a recurring lace pattern

Name: Mabelline
Subject: rows
Comment: if you are working quite a few rows and suddenly have to stop, (lets say you have 40 sts and have to knit 25 rows in st st), then i like to knit/purl the number of stitches+the row you are on. this tends to work better when you have more sts than required rows. (being 13, i have come up with several shortcuts like this so i can keep my mind on other things:)

Name: Daphne
Subject: Keep patterns like new
Comment: I photocopy the pattern I'm working on keeping it safe and clean and use the photocopy. I use a pencil to tick off where I am on the pattern and take it with me without spoiling the original.

Name: jan
Subject: keeping your place on a pattern
Comment: i use a magnetic board and magnetic strips (from my cross stitch materials) to hold my knitting directions and to help keep track of where i am on the pattern. when i put the materials away for the day i write on a sticky note where i left off on the pattern and stick it on the magnetic board.

Name: Ukrainian Knitter
Subject: Online Patterns
Comment: Instead of printing online patterns straight from the publishers website, I copy the pattern into Microsoft Word. Then I cut out pictures that I don't need, maybe shrink the font, etc. If there are two versions of a scarf, and you only want to knit one, erase the other one! It will save you a fortune on ink and paper.

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